TOWN BEES

Beekeeping, Gardening and Quilting in Eastern Wake County, North Carolina

Monday, July 24, 2017

Hive #2 July, 2017

I checked Hive #2 last Friday to see if the Queen was out of her cage and what was happening in the hive. The Queen was out and I saw her - she looked healthy. I'm feeding this hive while they get established.

I also checked Hive #1 - so many bees in this hive.
As most of you know, it's been unbearably hot so the bees are working hard to keep their hive at the right temperature.

Monday, July 10, 2017

Yes, that is correct. Queen #2 for Hive #2 which I made a split from Hive #1 on the first of July. In my haste and lack of patience, ignorance and on and on, I opened the hive on July 5th and this is what happened . . . . the queen had not been released from her little cage. There was lots of candy left in the cage and I thought she would be out by then or should be out so I popped the top off and she flew away. And she did not fly back in even though I wanted her to and it was a slim possibility that she would. So I checked the hive later and she was not there. I was told the queen will sometimes fly back in the hive - just wait a day or two and see what happens.

So Saturday I checked and no queen! Mr. Ellis picked me up a queen and dropped her off today. She is safely in the hive waiting to be released sometime next week by the bees - not me! I am feeding the hive and have taken the top super off. And I will keep my hands off the hive.
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Sunday, July 2, 2017

It's about time! I think it has been three years since I took honey from my hives. It is such a process - the getting ready part is a lot of work and then the cleaning up is more - there's literally honey everywhere.

I use the extractor from our local beekeeping association. Plastic on the floor, table and anywhere in the general vicinity. I use plastic containers to hold the supers since the honey will leak all over the place if it's not in some type of container. Five gallon food grade plastic buckets hold the honey - after extracting I will let it sit for a week or more before putting in jars. And yes I have this thing - I don't use plastic jars - I really like glass and I have more than enough.

I took the honey on Friday morning and it was an all day job and continued thru Saturday. I took off 19 frames of fully capped honey and I got about three quarters of a five gallon bucket - that's a lot of honey. I hope it's enough for all those folks I have promised honey to and that want honey.

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

﻿It's been 20 years since the first Harry Potter book was published! It seems like yesterday really. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was published in Britain on June 26, 1997. Since then, it has sold more than 450 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 79 languages.

My favorite characters - Harry, Ron and Hermoine.

Although I have all the books, I have never finished reading the whole series. Probably considered a sin by some but just haven't gotten back into it - 20 years - well, other things have happened since then. But maybe I'll give it a go.

Saturday, June 10, 2017

So today I checked the bees. I know - it has been awhile - lots and lots of bees. Checked the top two supers and they're full of honey. I can't take the honey right now so I added a deep to the top of the hive. This is a temporary fix but will give them some room and give me some time. I have braced each side in case we have windy days and/or storms. So now there's a deep, four supers and another deep on top.

Monday, May 29, 2017

Memorial Day began as Decoration Day, recognizing the family tradition of placing flowers on graves to honor the soldiers, sailors and Marines of the Civil War. John A. Logan, commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union soldiers, made these celebrations official in 1868, establishing May 30 as the day for veterans to honor their dead comrades.
Even before the war ended, women’s groups across much of the South were gathering informally to decorate the graves of Confederate dead. Many in the South regarded the holiday as a Northern commemoration and chose dates other than May 30 to remember their Civil War dead.
Confederate Memorial Day is celebrated in North Carolina on May 10. May 10 marks the anniversaries of the death of Thomas Jonathan 'Stonewall' Jackson (a general in the Confederate army) in 1863 and the capture of Jefferson Davis in 1865.
After World War I, there was further debate over whether the country should honor its war dead with a single holiday or whether World War I dead would have their own holiday on Armistice Day in November. The debate continued until after World War II, when the current purpose of the holidays became established: Memorial Day for honoring the dead, and Armistice Day, renamed Veterans Day, for honoring and thanking the living.

In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May.
The American flag should be hung at half-staff until noon on Memorial Day, then raised to the top of the staff. And since 2000, when the U.S. Congress passed legislation, all Americans are encouraged to pause for a National Moment of Remembrance at 3 p.m. local time.

Fatalities from U.S. Wars and Conflicts

American Revolution (1775-1783)

4,435

War of 1812 (1812-1815)

2,260

Mexican War (1846-1848)

13,283

Civil War (1861-1865)

620,000

Spanish-American War (1898-1902)

385

World War I (1917-1918)

116,516

World War II (1941-1945)

405,399

Korean War (1950-1953)

36,574

Vietnam War (1964-1975)

58,220

Gulf War (1990-1991)

383

Afghanistan War (2001-present)

2,381

Iraq War (2003-2012)

Let us never forget the lives that have been lost and the sacrifices made by so many.

Wednesday, May 24, 2017

TV is just horrible these days and I cancelled Netflix (computer/tv/instructions not good - I'm a little slow) so maybe later I'll try it again. In the meantime, I'm watching PBS and other stuff like The Andy Griffith Show.

So I have some questions and I know I can Google for answers but think about this - Andy is probably the most likeable guy and never hardly ever gets upset. He's just a happy fella. What makes him so happy - certainly not his love life or lack thereof. Does he have any family other than Aunt Bea - where are his parents and any siblings? What happened to Opie's mother and why is she never, ever mentioned. I know it's a TV program but did you know they have Bible Study lessons based on this show. Yep, it's true.

Well I just read this post to check for spelling, etc and started laughing. Obviously I need to get a life!